When Homeschooling Just Isn’t Possible

When Homeschooling Just Isn't Possible Guest Post by LaToya Edwards http://LaToyaEdwards.net

This is my second year homeschooling my boys. And it started off really rocky. You see this summer my boys and I had to move unexpectedly out of our home and spent nearly three months homeless. We stayed with gracious friends and family. One friend even let me use her home to bake a birthday cake for my youngest and to host the party when the weather turned ugly.

It was hard living with someone else. My grandmother has a big heart but wasn’t used to having two little boys in the house. In efforts to try and keep them quiet we spent a lot of time outside or watching television. All of our homeschool supplies and curriculum were packed away in storage. My boys asked daily when we could start school, and I never had definitive answers. It took a lot longer than I’d hoped to find an affordable place to live.

My oldest son pleaded with me one day, “Mommy can we just do something?” My heart broke for him and we started doing short devotions during the day. We started taking short trips to the library for quick phonics lessons. Those were short-lived though as I spent most of our time looking for a place to live. And as the search stretched out I feel into a serious depression.

Even after we moved in and get settled we weren’t able to get right back into the swing of things. There were many starts and stops along the way. It seemed like no matter what I tried we just couldn’t get started.  I felt horrible about it, but I had to take the time to get myself together. Sometimes homeschooling just isn’t possible. It’s okay when it can’t , embrace the time off and rest and recuperate!

Gradually we found our stride. Slowly we got back into our daily devotions. Then I added in some read alouds and hands-on projects. We still haven’t fully gotten into our school year. We are taking our time and just spending time together as a family. The rest can wait!

PhotobucketLaToya is a single, homeschooling mom of two bouncing boys. She lives for the quiet moments of the day which are few and far between with two rambunctious young men running around the house. She strives each day to life fully for God and although she often falls short she is determined to stay the course.You can keep up with LaToya on her blog, Twitter and Facebook.

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15 Comments

  1. Thank you for sharing this story. I feel your despair, but your boys obviously are incredible little men to be asking to do school! I know academics may have fallen by the wayside, but I bet they learned a lot of other incredibly important life lessons from this: how to live with others and be gracious and respectful, how to persevere during times when depression and despair make you want to throw in the towel, and gratitude when and for what God provides. There was a time when we were sharing a car between our family and my in-laws and it made us so grateful when we were able to buy a car of our own. It wasn’t a pretty car, but it was God’s provision and every time we climbed in it I gave thanks to God. I know you are doing the same and (don’t get me wrong, academics are important, and you will get there) but these life lessons will prove so vital to your boys as they grow that they shouldn’t be forgotten or discounted. God Bless you and your boys in your new home! May the new year bring you blessings in abundance, peace, joy, organization and a new normal!

  2. my prayers go out to you. I understand feeling the need to homeschool, but not being able to because of the circumstances of life. homeschooled children really will catch up quite quickly and it sounds like they are motivated learners. the time spent with Grandma cannot ever be quantified and opportunity will not always be there. She is probably enjoying more than you know!!
    hugs,
    Holly

  3. Thank you so much for this post. I know it must have been hard sharing this with us, but I really appreciate it. This our second year home schooling as well, and we too have had a life change that has detoured our school year. We bought a new house in September. Well new to us. It is an old home with lots of potential, but in need of a lot of TLC. I work part time, and around the same time as the move the company I work for started giving me less hours so I needed to pick up work else where. While I wasn’t working more hours than previously it has resulted in more time spent away from my kids. My husband and his parents have picked up, but we’ve really only maintained reading and math. I felt so guilty that I was falling down on my job and responsibility. As I was praying about it I realized guilt does not come from God only conviction. God called us to home school our children. He will give us a way even if it isn’t how we think it should conventionally happen. My youngest daughter is struggling with reading right now, and I thought it was because I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to. Maybe that was part of it, but maybe God is giving us an opportunity to slow down and focus on mastering reading. I wouldn’t normally write such a long comment, but reading your post has made me realize I am not the only one in this boat. Thank you for your encouragement!

  4. What your sons learned during the homeless time may not be academic, but it’s more valuable life and character lessons. Your homeless experience might have planted small seeds in their hearts that will inspire them to do something wonderful when they are grown men.

    When you wrote about living with your grandmother, it reminded me of the two years my elderly grandmother lived with us. She needed a lot of care; it interrupted our lives; but we wouldn’t trade that time for anything. My younger sister was inspired to specialize in geriatrics because she grew to love the elderly.

    They are blessed to have an amazing mother. Thanks for being transparent and sharing your story.

  5. Your post bore witness with some of my own life’s happenings. I understand where you are coming from, but more than that, am glad to see that I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t quite get back on track-that is isn’t just me! My daughter is back in cyber for her senior year, and I’m hoping to bring my boy back home next school year.
    Enjoyed your post, and your picture-you are just lovely!

  6. I wish I could have homeschooled my kids but, I know that I would have let a lot less difficulty get in my way to really do it. Its amazing that you stuck to it

  7. Thanks for sharing your story LaToya! I am a single mom who is also homeschooling and in the process of transitioning from one home to another, all while looking for a job. It is very challenging because I am trying to maintain some ‘normalcy’ while working around the packed boxes/totes that hold many of your things.

    Hang in there!

    Monise

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